Best Buildium Alternatives for Small Landlords

Why landlords look for Buildium alternatives

Buildium is serious software. Essential gives you double-entry accounting, leasing, maintenance, communications and owner and resident portals for $62 a month, and the price holds from 1 unit to at least 40. For a 20-unit owner, that’s $3.10 a door and often money well spent.

For smaller landlords, the reviews point to the same few problems:

• Price increases. Reviewers say fees have risen repeatedly since RealPage bought Buildium.
• Transaction fees. Incoming EFT is $2.35 a payment on Essential, outgoing EFT is $0.99, and each business bank account costs $99 to set up. Live phone support starts on Growth at $192 a month.
• Too much for a few units. At 1 unit you pay $744 a year. At 3 units that’s $248 a door.
• Limits. Some users find the help resources thin and report customization limited.

Here’s what the EFT fee means in practice. At 10 units, with tenants paying by ACH and you covering the fee, Essential costs $62 + (10 x $2.35) = $85.50 a month.

The best Buildium alternatives, one by one

Rentec Direct

Rentec Starter costs $25 a month for up to 10 properties and 10 tenants, with 3 users and one ACH deposit account. It includes accounting, online rent, applications, screening, a tenant portal, maintenance, Dropbox Sign e-sign, a mobile app and automated late fees. Against Buildium Essential billed monthly, that’s $37 a month less, or $444 a year.

Past 10 properties you move to Rentec Pro, which starts at $50 a month and adds unlimited properties and users, free incoming ACH (one per active property each month, then $0.50), automatic bank sync, QuickBooks sync and 1099 e-filing. A third-party analysis puts it at $2 a unit with a $50 minimum; we haven’t confirmed that rate. If you manage for others, Rentec PM adds an owner portal, trust accounting and ACH payouts to owners.

Screening is cheaper than Buildium’s: $14.95 for a basic report on Starter and $29.45 with a TransUnion credit report.

It’s wrong for you if you want a polished interface. Reviewers often call it dated, and some report bugs during a major version rollout.

TenantCloud

TenantCloud prices by active leases. Starter is $15 a month billed annually for up to 10 leases. Growth is $29.17 billed annually ($350 a year) for up to 30. Pro is $50 billed annually ($600 a year) for up to 60 and adds tax reports, bank reconciliation and a separate owner portal.

At 20 units, Growth costs $350 a year against Buildium Essential’s $744 billed monthly or $669.60 billed annually. Tenant ACH is $1.75 on Growth and $1.50 on Pro, below Buildium’s $2.35.

It’s wrong for you if you can’t tolerate bugs. Reviewers describe workflow interruptions, slow bank verification and generic support replies, and the tax reports are gated to Pro.

RentRedi

If you only manage your own units, RentRedi covers listings, applications, screening, e-sign, rent collection, late fees, maintenance and basic accounting for $12 a month billed annually. That’s $144 a year for unlimited units. Tenants pay $1 per ACH payment and 3.1% plus $0.30 by card.

Against Buildium Essential billed monthly, you save $600 a year at any size.

It’s wrong for you if you manage for others. There’s no owner portal and no trust accounting. Reviewers also mention extra clicks for core tasks and some complaints about deposit timing.

TurboTenant

TurboTenant’s free plan handles listing syndication, applications, screening, online rent, maintenance requests and basic accounting for $0. Tenants pay $2 per ACH payment and 3.49% by card, and applicants pay $55 for screening. Pro costs $199 a year for 1 to 10 units, makes tenant ACH free and adds automatic bank import.

If you’re on Buildium mainly for rent collection and maintenance on a few units, this saves the full $744 a year.

It’s wrong for you if accounting is why you chose Buildium. TurboTenant’s books are basic until Pro, and there’s no owner portal.

DoorLoop

DoorLoop is the other full property management platform small landlords consider. Its base plan, DoorLoop One, includes accounting, leasing, maintenance, payments, owner and tenant portals, a company website, unlimited users and a full API. Tenant ACH is $1.50 on One.

The catch is a $199 monthly minimum. At 1, 5 or 20 units you pay $199, which is $137 a month more than Buildium Essential. The per-unit price of $2.50 only takes over at 80 units.

It’s wrong for you under about 80 units, unless you specifically need features Buildium puts on its higher plans.

What to check before you leave Buildium

Buildium does a few jobs that cheaper tools handle differently, so confirm each one before you give notice.

• Owner statements and trust accounting. If you manage for anyone else, Rentec PM lists trust accounting and owner payouts. TenantCloud adds an owner portal on Pro. RentRedi and TurboTenant have neither.
• Bank accounts. Rentec Starter includes one ACH deposit account. If you keep a separate account per property, you’ll need Pro.
• Users. Rentec Starter allows 3 users. Check the user count on whichever plan you pick if a partner or bookkeeper logs in too.
• Reports your accountant relies on. Run the same year-end reports during the new tool’s trial and compare them with Buildium’s before you commit.
• Who pays payment fees. Buildium lets you choose. Most cheaper tools default to the tenant, so tell tenants before their cost changes.

Which Buildium alternative to choose

• Under 10 units, and you want real books: Rentec Direct Starter.
• 10 to 30 leases, and you want an owner portal later: TenantCloud Growth now, Pro when you need reconciliation.
• You own every unit and mainly collect rent: RentRedi or TurboTenant Free. Add Stessa or Baselane if you need cleaner books for tax time.
• You manage for other owners: stay with Buildium, or look at Rentec PM for trust accounting at a lower price.

If you switch, do it at a clean cutover date. Save Buildium’s trial balance, rent roll and tenant ledgers, enter opening balances in the new tool, and have tenants enroll in the new payment portal before the next due date.